Breakout Edu TipsI first learned about Breakout Edu at the Ed Tech Team's Google Apps Summit in July 2015. I was excited to try it out with my own class, but I had just left the classroom. I felt the idea of using Breakouts is such a great engaging way to provide content ...

My Classroom Vision and Mission StatementsAt today’s welcome back staff meeting, my administrators asked the staff to think of our own personal vision and mission statement for our classroom. After being out of the classroom for the past two years, and returning to teaching biology this year, I’ve...

Spotlight Apps: Point Students in the Right DirectionWhen projecting websites or slideshows to students, sometimes you need to make something stand out. Some of you may have seen me use a spotlight tool to draw attention to specific parts of the screen in my PD Sessions or on screencasts. I have been using ...

Breaking Down Walls to Increase Teacher Confidence When Integrating TechnologyI've been an Instructional Technology Specialist (Tech TOSA) for the past year and a half. In my role, it is my job to help train and coach teachers in my district to integrate technology into their curriculum to enhance instruction, transform student lear...

Updating a Vocabulary Lesson - 10 Important WordsOne of my favorite vocabulary lessons, that I learned early in my teaching career, is called "Ten Important Words". It is a great way for students to find meaning of words based on the context of the text, allows students to judge the importance of the wor...

Email Check In After Providing Professional DevelopmentA few weeks ago, at Fall CUE , I attended Kevin Fairchild and Jessica Lura 's session "Strategies for Teaching Adults". I had participated in the Leading Edge Certification course for Professional Learning Leaders with them last spring and enjoyed learning...

Email Check In After Providing Professional DevelopmentA few weeks ago, at Fall CUE , I attended Kevin Fairchild and Jessica Lura 's session "Strategies for Teaching Adults". I had participated in the Leading Edge Certification course for Professional Learning Leaders with them last spring and enjoyed learning...

Lesson Crashers: Psychology - Functions of the BrainI wrote up this blog post for my district staff, but decided to share it on my personal blog too. I am hoping to get more teachers to book appointments with me for instructional technology, rather than seeing me as just their tech support to help them with...

Best Practices for Teacher Management of Chromebook CartsTo best protect the Chromebooks and ensure that they last as long as possible for you to continue using, here are some best practices. With repeated use, students will quickly learn the procedures, and check in and out will be much smoother. Assign each s...

Leading Edge Certification, Blended & Online Teacher: Module 6.3 ReflectionModule 6.3 Reflection Prompt: This module has explored the use of technology tools for both formative and summative assessment. As you think about how you will implement formative and summative assessments in the online and blended environments: What are so...